Development vs Welfare

Imagine a new world free of?inequality and poverty. Before you roll your eyes, humour us for a few moments. Grab a mug of coffee and find somewhere comfortable to sit. Allow yourself to drift off into thought and visualise.

Just think of how it would turn our nation around if every single person was able to make a living, put food on the table, and secure not only their own futures but the futures of their children and their children’s children.

Nice thought, isn’t it? Yet, 7.9-million people remain jobless in South Africa alone and approximately 207 million globally.

Transformation was never going to be an easy process. We inherited a nation characterised by decades of discrimination based on race and gender and the exclusion of persons with disabilities.

While the government has enacted legislation to address the inherited severe inequities and unfair discrimination, the fundamental right to equality is still not guaranteed.

Reversing the harms of the past is a prerequisite for nation-building. Moving towards sustainability is a journey that starts with awareness and then takes progressive steps towards an overall positive impact for all Africans.

What is the difference between Development and Welfare?

The words, development and welfare are often strung together when talking about ways in which to tackle constraints to human growth and economic progress, but are these two words one of the same?

Development is a process that generates growth, advancement, and positive change across physical, economic, environmental, social, and demographic elements. It looks at the system, not just its moving parts.

Welfare refers to government-sponsored assistance programmes for individuals and families in need, including health care assistance, food stamps, and unemployment compensation. Welfare programmes are typically funded through taxation.

Sure, they both sound amazing and help people, but here’s the thing – not both are sustainable.

Development requires time and effort to achieve but has the power to address the root cause of the problem and create lasting transformation. It also prevents the same mistake from happening again.

On the other hand, welfare requires less effort to achieve but has the power to create a cycle of dependency that destroys dignity and passes down poverty from one generation to the next.

What Inspires the Sustainability Development Journey?

When we talk about development, what do you think is the biggest issue for South Africa today? If we had to pick one, it would be the snail-paced rate at which we are moving forward on our journey of sustainable change.

While we have amazing people and organisations that share the desire to achieve change, we still fall into the trap of choosing what is easy over what is right.

We need to implement sustainable transformation that is practical and impactful, innovative, and scalable projects that are measurable, programmes and projects must have a long-term social and economic impact, and programmes and projects that break the cycle of poverty, exclusion, social injustice, and more, to break the 100-plus-year-old glass ceiling.

Shifting mindsets by challenging the status quo, and becoming pioneers of change, and changing lives today to impact generations to come is the only solution.

A Word on LFP’s Hydro Coop:?Grow the Business as You Grow as a Business Owner

LFP Agri aims to assist communities in the alleviation of poverty through development programmes centred on entrepreneurship and job creation. This is done by establishing model incubator farms, and upskilling people with agricultural, management, business, and critical entrepreneurial skills.

We also provide integrated agricultural business strategies for the sustainable growth of the economy, with a focus on women, youth empowerment and people with disabilities, to reduce spiralling unemployment rates and increase economic inclusion of these groups.

Our long-term, strategic, and innovative approach transitions from traditional business services to complete solutions that enable our clients and partners to experience the true value of diversity.

Our unique, forward-thinking agricultural smart farm combines livestock (broiler chickens) and vegetable farming. It is completely OFF-GRID, running on solar and using only 150l of water. A nine square-metre multifunctional smart farm raises approximately 1 080 broiler chickens and grows 3?600 vegetables annually.

1000 Hydro Coops create 1000 new agripreneurs and generate a combined income of R117 000?000 annually. It has an indirect impact on 4000 people and the ability to form co-ops that generates opportunities across the full agricultural chain creating at least 200 more jobs with an investment of only R50 000 000.??

Conclusion

We are on a mission to equip people and communities with the developmental and scalable solutions they require to enter the labour force and become self-sufficient.

As pioneers of change, we are dedicated to collaborating with others, pursuing the common good, and working hard so that communities prosper and people who are vulnerable, isolated, and disadvantaged can live life to the fullest.

Join us today! Visit www.lfpgroup.co.za